Empty Wishes
by IGotBitten
Summary: Edward and Bella are best friends and nothing more, until Edward confesses that he has fallen in love with the Head Cheerleader in school. Why does this upset Bella so much? Is there more to their relationship than either of them first thought?
1. Love?

**A/N: This is my first fanfiction, so please R&R so that I know whether to continue with the story or not.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, just the plot line.**

Another wet Monday morning in Forks, I thought to myself, as I slammed the door of my truck shut and began to make my way into school. With any other vehicle that old, I would have had to ease the door shut slowly but my 1953 Chevrolet pickup truck was more robust than any tank and could handle a bit of tough love. I adored it.

The morning passed in a mindless blur and it was a relief when the bell for lunch rang and I could finally catch up with my friends. As I entered the cafeteria, I spotted Alice waving at me from our usual table and hurried to join him and the others.

Before I could reach my friends I had to pass by the table where Tanya and her cheerleader friends sat. Tanya was Head Cheerleader and the pinnacle of all evil. She had stick straight strawberry blonde hair and big blue eyes. She was tanned and athletic and had a rather impressive cleavage, or so I was told, that unbalanced her tiny frame – not that anyone seemed to mind. Every guy in school worshipped her.

As I scuttled past her table her baby blue's narrowed and she called out loudly,

"Oh, hello Bella!" her voice dripping, with mock sincerity. I mumbled a hello as I carried on moving towards my table and, quick as a flash, she nudged the guy next to her who stuck out his foot, which I promptly tripped over and sent me flying towards the floor.

Lovely.

Without looking at her or any of her giggling friends, I jumped up and finally made it to my table.

Since moving to Forks I had managed to make a decent number of friends. There was Angela and her long-term boyfriend Ben; Mike and of course the Cullens. The Cullens were a rather aloof who, before I had become friends with them, had kept themselves separate from the rest of the school and had been treated cautiously because of it. Esme and Carlisle Cullen had been unable to have children of their own and had adopted Alice, Edward and Emmett. They also fostered Rosalie and Jasper, who were twins and were Esme's niece and nephew. The Cullen children were all strangely beautiful, and this did nothing to increase their chances of acceptance in a school where most of the students were envious enough already of their wealth and good fortune; Carlisle being an extremely talented doctor at the local hospital. Despite this, the Cullens seemed happy enough immersed in their own private bubble, which I felt honoured to be included in.

Out of all the Cullens, Edward was the one I felt closest to. I could tell him all my darkest secrets and he never judged me. He was my best friend and I could no longer imagine life without him.

"Are you hurt?" Edward asked as I sat down.

"No, I'm fine." I replied "I just really wish someone would teach her a lesson." I looked back over my shoulder and glared at Tanya, who smiled sweetly and waved. Edward raised a hand and waved back shyly and my mouth fell open.

"What are you doing?!"

"I was just…um…nothing…"he replied, blushing. I shook my head in wonder and turned my attention back to the rest of the table.

As a comfortable silence fell over the table, I noticed that Edward had barely said a word and was instead sat there, _picking a bagel to pieces with long, pale fingers_.

"Hey are you okay?" I asked him, putting a hand over one of his, "You haven't said much." He glanced up at me, emerald eyes glittering as he replied,

"Yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking I might go and see if one of the practice rooms was available. Would you like to come?" I nodded eagerly. Edward played piano and the music teachers often let him practice at lunch times in one of the spare rooms. He knew I loved to listen to him play but was quite self-conscious and didn't often allow it. I assumed that his willingness today meant that he wanted to talk and couldn't wait until after school. I gathered my things together and told everyone I'd see them later. Edward, always faster than me, had already gone and by the time I caught up with him we were at the practice room.

"So what's up?" I said as I set my bag down and took a seat. "Tell me everything."

"What makes you think something's up?" I gave him a look. "Okay, I'll tell you but you have to keep it a secret, okay?"

"Of course."

"I think I'm in love."

"What? When? Why? WHO?"

"Calm down! It's not that big a deal."

"Well, who?"

"Tanya."

My blood froze and my heart stopped beating.

**A/N: Sorry if I rambled on, but what did you think? Any good?**


	2. Just friends

**A/N: Sorry it's a bit short. The next chapter will be longer, I promise. Hope you like it ******

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, just the plot line.**

"You…like…Tanya?"

"Um, yes – have you stopped breathing?" I quickly sucked in a breath and struggled to control my amazement. How could he love, or even like, Tanya? It didn't make sense. Then again they were both very attractive, or at least he was.

"How long?" I asked. I was curious to know how long he had been keeping this disturbing secret.

"Well I have admired her for a long time from afar, but she's in a couple of my classes and we've been talking quite a bit recently."

"You didn't tell me that."

"I knew that you and her didn't exactly see eye to eye and I wanted to be sure before I said anything."

"And now you are?"

"Now I'm what?" He looked confused.

"Now you're sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Oh." I couldn't think what to say. What is a person meant to say when their best friend, the person they care about most in the world, confesses to b in love with someone so evil? I decided that I would deal with it later and that for now I would just enjoy Edward's music.

"So are you going to play then?"

"What? Oh, yes, sorry." He opened the lid of the piano, took a deep breath and began to play. As the music washed over me, I closed my eyes and tried to forget about what Edward had just told me. Why did I even care so much?

When the bell rang, I reluctantly picked up my bag and followed Edward from the room. We walked to Biology together, discussing music as usual and did not pass Tanya on the way, for which I was grateful. Biology and Gym passed quickly and I hurried home, telling Edward that I would see him later.

After finishing my homework and making sure I was on top of the housework, I began to prepare dinner for Charlie and I, so that by the time he got home, the house was filled with the smell of food. Dinner passed quietly. One of the things I enjoyed about living with my father was that he never found the need to fill every conversation with meaningless chatter. He was perfectly happy to eat in silence. We got on well. Charlie asked about school and I asked about work and that was the conversation for the evening. He offered to clear up but I insisted he go and relax and he eventually agreed. The doorbell rang and I checked the clock. He was right on time. I ran to let Edward in and as usual we headed straight to my room, not bothering to disturb Charlie who was used to this arrangement and had no objections to Edward and I spending time alone in my room. Why would he? We were just friends.

Edward took out the sheets of music we had been working on the previous Friday and began to look over them. For a few months now, Edward and I had been writing songs together. It had started when, after listening to him perform one of his own compositions for me, I had begun to think of lyrics for it, purely by accident. He had heard me singing to myself and demanded to know what it was. One thing led to another and now he composed the music and I wrote the lyrics, he played piano and we sung together. It worked well and our voices harmonised nicely. Tonight we were trying to finish a song called 'Just For You' but after two hours of staring at the half-finished music, we decided to leave it for now. As we packed everything away, Edward turned to me.

"Bella?"

"Mm-hmm?" I replied, looking up at him.

"I know you don't like Tanya but _I do_ and I really want you to approve. She's actually a really nice person." I snorted.

"Bella!"

"I'm sorry. You're probably right. I don't know her that well and she's probably a really nice person. But whatever happens we're still friends aren't we?"

"Best friends." I smiled as he pulled me into a hug.

I wouldn't let anything change that.


	3. What if?

**A/N: Sorry I didn't update yesterday. I've written chapters 3 and 4 now and I'll try and get them both up today but it seems unlikely. Review please!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, just the plot line.**

Later that night as I lay in bed, struggling to switch off my mind and get some sleep, a new thought occurred to me: What if that did change? What if Tanya and Edward ended up going out? What if I tried to like Tanya but couldn't? What if Edward had to choose between us? Who would he choose? I realised that if he really truly loved Tanya, there would be no competition between her and me. Although I couldn't ever imagine choosing someone else over Edward. Did that mean that I _loved_ Edward, as more than a friend? I rolled over and buried my face in my pillow to muffle a groan. I was going insane.

Despite having only three hours sleep, I managed to drag myself out of bed and make it to school with a minute to spare. As I half-ran, half-walked to English so that I wouldn't be late, I spotted Edward and Tanya stood near her locker in deep conversation. As she said something to make him blush, he looked down and she reached over and pushed a stray lock of hair back from his face so that he looked up at her, through his eyelashes with those piercing green eyes and smiled. I felt a stab of envy at that and realised that I had been right last night. I was in love with Edward and had been for a while now, but I had been convinced that these were just feelings of friendship and nothing more.

Oh, crap.

The bell rang then and I hurried away before either of them could see me. I tried to avoid Edward between lessons but there was no escaping him at lunch. As I was leaving the lunch line I heard him calling my name and my heart rate picked up immediately. Did it always do that or had I only just began to notice it?

"Bella!" I looked up.

"Hey Edward!" I smiled at him.

"Hi. Listen I'm not sitting with everyone for lunch today." He leaned in to whisper in my ear. "This morning I asked Tanya out and she said yes! Can you believe it?"

"Wow. I'm so happy for you." I said, slightly dazed.

"Really?"

"Really, really."

"You're the best, Bella. See you later!" He grinned at me and dashed off.

I managed to find my table and sit down without falling over, crying or fainting, which was a surprise for me in my current state.

"Hey! Bella." I jumped and looked up to see Alice leaning down the table towards me.

"Slumber party at mine on Friday, okay?"

"Yeah, sure." I mumbled, slipping back into my reverie.

Before I knew it I was home and then it was almost late enough to be able to go to bed. Time seemed to be passing quickly, which I was glad about. I just wanted to be able to lie down and cry myself to sleep. Edward had called earlier to say that he was going out with Tanya and couldn't come round tonight. He had sounded excited and had didn't notice that I had barely said more than two words. Finally it was dark and I crawled into bed and let the tears flow.

By Friday, I was sick of crying and feeling sorry for myself but was still dreading the sleepover. Alice had convinced Edward that an evening away from Tanya was a good idea, so he was going to be there.

"'Absence makes the heart grow fonder,'" she chirped, before adding in a slightly more menacing tone, "You'll be there." This, added to the fact that I would have to spend the entire evening watching Rosalie and Emmett making out every five minutes and Alice and Jasper gazing lovingly at each other, put me in no mood for a slumber party.

The relationships between the Cullens and the Hales caused a lot of gossip in Forks but I didn't see anything wrong with it. They weren't related and they clearly loved each other so where was the problem? Still, at the moment, I wasn't sure I wanted to be exposed to that degree of affection.

I had hoped that Charlie had something else planned and wanted me to say home for the evening, but he waved me off cheerfully as I headed out of the door with my overnight bag to Alice's waiting car. To be honest, I think he was just glad that I had made some friends in Forks and didn't want to jeopardise that. As Alice drove, shockingly fast, towards their house I contemplated the evening ahead of me. Alice would want to play Barbie dolls with Rosalie and I, then she would try and get me drunk, before gathering everyone together to play Truth or Dare. I was worried about that part the most. I was a terrible liar anyway, and if she succeeded in getting me drunk, which she probably would, who knows what I might let slip?

**A/N: If you thought it was any good, leave me a review please ******


	4. Regrets

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long. This chapter is quite a bit longer than the others to make up for the delay. Hope you like it. Review please!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, just the plot line.**

"Truth or Dare, Emmett?"

"Dare, of course."

"Of course. Hmm, I dare you to go and tell Esme and Carlisle that you've decided you want to be a women and are having a sex change operation next week." Edward grinned at him.

"Fine." Emmett replied, getting up to look for his parents. "Be right back."

"Nice one." Jasper smiled appreciatively, as Rose and Alice rolled their eyes and I giggled.

He returned a few minutes later, pouting.

"They didn't believe me!" He shook his head in wonder and sat down next to Rosalie, who kissed him sweetly. I looked away.

"Bella next." Alice ordered as I grumbled to myself. "Truth or Dare?" Miraculously I had stayed sober, so I chose Truth, which was likely to be the less embarrassing option.

"Okay, here's an easy one: Is there anyone you like at the moment?"

"No."

"Are you sure? How about Mike? He seems to like you." I glanced at Edward, who was looking strangely pissed off and…jealous? No, couldn't be.

"I'm sure." I replied. "There's no-one."

"Fine," Alice huffed "I'm bored of this game anyway. Let's play Spin the Bottle." Before anyone could protest, she grabbed an empty beer bottle and spun it expertly. It stopped at Jasper. Alice grinned and turned to kiss him full on the mouth.

"Hey, you're only meant to kiss him on the cheek!" objected Emmett.

"Oops." giggled Alice.

Jasper spun the bottle and it landed on Rosalie.

"Ew, this is so weird!" she squealed and pecked Jasper on the cheek. Everyone laughed.

After that, Rosalie had to kiss Edward (I tried to look normal), who then kissed Emmett, which everyone found funny except those two. Emmett kissed me and then it was my turn to spin. The bottle spun slower and slower and finally came to land on…Edward. Neither of us moved.

"Well, go on then." boomed Emmett and Edward leaned across the circle and softly kissed my cheek. I blushed bright red and looked down quickly. Edward spun the bottle again and, of course, it had to land on me. This time I shuffled across the to Edward and, putting my hand on his shoulder for balance, I pressed my lips to his for a fraction of a second and felt sparks shoot through my body. I crawled back to my place as quickly as I could, catching Alice's eye, who raised her eyebrows at me. Shit. I was going to hear about that later. I grabbed the bottle and spun it again. It landed on Alice and I kissed her briefly as all the guys cheered.

When Alice finally allowed us to go to bed, I tried to slip away unnoticed but Alice wasn't having any of it. She hauled me into her room and pulled me onto the sofa.

"So when were you going to tell me that you're in love with my brother?" she demanded.

"Alice I'm not - " she cut me off with a look. "I only realised a couple of days ago." I sighed. "What am I going to do?"

"How about telling him?"

"Ha, ha. That's a good one."

"I'm serious, Bella."

"Alice. He's going out with the most popular girl in school. He's gorgeous, funny, smart, talented…I don't stand a chance."

"You're his best friend. A week ago, you two were inseparable. That girl is an idiot. You are one hundred – no, one thousand times nicer, more interesting and more beautiful than her. How could he not love you?"

"Aww, Alice that's so sweet. I mean. It's not true but it's nice to hear it anyway." I hugged her as she rolled her eyes.

"You're so stubborn sometimes Bella. Why won't you believe me?"

"Because it's unbelievable. Let's not talk about it anymore. It's too depressing."

"Okay, another time. You probably want to sleep now."

"Definitely. See you tomorrow." I told her as I left her room and padded down the hall to the guest room.

As I made my way down the corridor I noticed that the door to Edward's room was open. If I had been thinking clearly I would have continued on my way and gone back to my room but unfortunately, I wasn't. It felt like I hadn't spoken to Edward in weeks and I missed him. I thought that after having an evening away from Tanya, he might have realised that he wasn't in love with her and that he loved…me? I should have known I'd say something I'd regret.

I crept up to his door and knocked softly before stepping carefully into the room. He was lying on his back in the centre of the huge double bed, which was the main focus of the room. He was listening to his iPod and had his eyes closed. I tiptoed to the bed and paused to take in his beauty. He looked so peaceful, like an angel. Even without being able to see his hypnotic, emerald eyes, he was still dazzling. He had the palest skin I had ever seen, as flawless and white as marble, emphasised by his dark grey t-shirt which fit snugly against his muscled torso. He had a straight angular nose, perfectly sharp cheekbones and a strong jaw. As my gaze traced down his face and my heart swelled with love for him, his eyes opened and we both gasped in shock.

"Bella! What are you doing?"

"I was just coming to say goodnight!" He paused for a moment, propping himself up on one elbow, as he took in my pyjamas and realised that I was telling the truth. With his eyes on me, I suddenly became very aware of how little flesh my pyjamas actually covered. They had been purchased by Alice for me on one of her many shopping expeditions and they had looked so cute that it was only now that I came to realise how revealing they were. The shorts were tiny and were vertically striped in black and white. The t-shirt was plain black with an image of a white apple with a bite missing from it and the words, 'Bite Me'. There was also a 2 or 3 cm gap between the shorts and t-shirt, which Alice had informed me, "looked great". I was never wearing them again.

Edward cleared his throat and I tried to disentangle myself from my musings.

"How long were you standing there?" he asked.

"Just a second," I replied, "I wasn't trying to scare you."

"Well you did anyway." He laughed. I joined in with his laughter nervously, still feeling embarrassed at being caught.

"So, um, goodnight, I guess." I said, backing away from the bed.

"Wait," he sat up, "I haven't spoken to you properly since Monday. How are you?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You don't seem fine."

"You really want to know?" I asked.

"Of course I do." he patter the bed beside him, "Come and sit." I wriggled onto the bed next to him, feeling awkward again.

"Okay, you want to know? It' a guy."

"A guy? What guy?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

"I just can't." I sighed.

"I still don't get it. Why is this guy a problem?"

"Because I'm in love with him and he likes someone else." I said, struggling to keep my voice under control.

"Oh."

Why was I telling him this? It was completely weird, but if it had been any other guy, I would have told him anything and I still wanted to know what he thought.

"So that's why I'm not fine."

"Oh Bella, why didn't you tell me before?" he asked, putting his arm around me.

'I only realised a few days ago."

"Well, why didn't you tell me then? I'm your best friend." I stiffened and pulled away from him.

"Are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I've barely seen you this week. Tanya seems to be a lot more important to you now, considering you've only been dating for a few days." I said, my voice dripping with acid.

"Oh, grow up, Bella!" he said exasperatedly, raising his voice.

I inhaled sharply and bit my lip to stop the tears that had filled my eyes from escaping. I ran from the room, ignoring his calls and threw myself onto my own bed, where I cried until my eyes ran dry.

**A/N: So what did you think? Reviews much appreciated. A smiley face would do!**


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